LOC16:11
13:11 GMT
GENEVA, Jan 1 (KUNA) -- Switzerland announced Thursday the opening of an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the fire that broke out at a ski resort of Crans-Montana in southwestern Switzerland earlier this morning, excluding at the moment an attack.
Valais Attorney General Beatrice Pilloud said in a press conference, "At this stage we are considering the hypothesis of a fire and we are not considering the possibility of an attack."
Local police said earlier today that the circumstances of the incident remain unclear but initial information indicated that a fire erupted at the resort which subsequently led to an internal explosion.
In a post in his account on (X), Swiss President Guy Parmelin who began today his term as President of the Swiss Confederation expressed deep shock over the incident.
Earlier this morning, Swiss police announced that dozens of people around 40 according to preliminary data had died and about 100 others were injured most of them with severe burns in a huge fire in Crans-Montana resort during New Year celebrations.
Local media reported that the nationalities of the victims have not yet been identified. (pickup previous)
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